After a long start from the darker end of the morning, everyone and everypony, save for two, was in the dining hall.

Currently, two of the head seats remained unfilled, though technically it was three unfilled seats since Applejack was still a little woozy and sputtering nonsense periodically from Lumberman's lap. Twilight had yet to return and Celestia would not be joining them.

Benny, nursing a Bloody Mary, sat between Pinkie and Granny Smith, noticing a face that wasn’t present.

"So, did Celestia bail on breakfast or did she jump ship last night?"

Conveniently seated within earshot, Luna would have been angry at even hearing her sister's name, had she not beaten the others to the seat next to Kelly.

"Tia had prior engagements," she cheerfully answered, any sense of hostility either gone or well hidden from sight.

Shining kept his mouth shut about how bad their discussion was. Best to change the subject of conversation.

"Celestia is always busy. How long is Twilight going to be?"

And, as if right on cue, Twilight walked in, sporting an extra pep in her step, with the rest of the Solar Guard joining her.

"Sorry, everypony. Oven Fresh and I could have talked for hours. Peter, you are in the best of hooves with her. And Applejack, how are you feeling today?"

Applejack was totally out of it and smiled drunkenly.

"Butt's clean, need pancakes tuh bath time."

Cerb busted out laughing.

"Outside of tripping balls, she's doing awesome."

Becky tried to act professional, but couldn't stop her giggling at the sight of the apple pony sprawled on her friend’s lap, yammering off one hilarious thing after another.

"Applejack is fine. No fever or sign of infection. Still sore, but healing up faster than I would have expected. Though managing her meds might need some looking into."

Nurse Redheart agreed and shot a smile over to Chris and Starlight.

"Not that I didn't mind the surprise visit from Chris this morning or the breakfast invitation that came after. Still, she's healing faster than Becky's book had me to believe would be possible. As a matter of fact, Becky took out my stitches this morning after she gave me an examination. So, it looks to be that while these blood related injuries can be serious, they heal relatively fast. At least faster than the wounds Mr. Husk had endured."

Fluttershy cleared her throat to correct the nurse.

"We're all friends here, so Justin or Cerb is fine. No need to be formal."

Nurse Redheart returned with a grateful smile, feeling a sense of comfort at being considered among friends in the group. This was so much better than hostilities she received her first time examining Cerb.

"Yes, Justin's wounds have not even reached the scab phase of his recovery yet. Most of Applejack's have started to scab over. She's likely to recover faster than Justin will."

Over by Lumberman, Applejack fell into a giggle fit, giving Granny Smith a curious look.

"Hey, Granny? Do your hooves hurt when you do this?" She tapped her hoof on the table. "Ow!"

Lumberman grabbed Applejack's forelegs and brought them away from the table before she could try again.

"Damnit, Apple Hat. Don't be hurting yourself like that."

Still not lucid enough to comprehend her own actions, Applejack ignored Lumberman and stayed focused on Granny.

"Mine does."

Granny rolled her eyes and grumbled at her grandfoal’s tomfoolery.

"You best take care uh yerself and be listening to Lumberman or I’ll put ya back in stitches once those heal up, ya hear me?"

Applejack, even in her drug addled state, knew she screwed up... but also thought it was funny and giggled some more.

"Sorry, Granny. How 'bouts I maken it up to ya by giving ya half my thirty minutes with Woody? Ya'd like dem hands 'uh his."

This suggestion ended up having the opposite effect, as Granny huffed angrily, looking quite rattled at the idea.

"Hands? No hands gonna make up fer making me worry like ya did."

As if to mirror Applejack, Twilight could only snort a laugh in response. Which earned her a small glare from the well aged mare.

"A hundred bits says you're wrong about that."

Amidst the playful banter and overall good mood the tables were sharing, along with Twilight and Granny Smith’s little debate, Luna was ready to get her meal in before leaving the others for some much needed rest.

"I think we can hold off on anypony else losing any bets until after we eat." That seemed to put the point to bed for the moment as the talking calmed down as the group prepared to eat.

Luna quickly started passing out trays for everyone to share. "And since we are in good spirits after the events of yesterday, I would like to make an announcement."

Everyone turned their undivided attention to Luna… except Applejack. She was busy entertaining herself by seeing all the different directions she could flip her ears in.

Luna had to let out a short chuckle at Applejack's display before making her announcement.

"As of last night, it was made clear to my sister and I that the two of us have been working too closely together in focusing on the goings on in Canterlot. More attention needs to be given to some of the lesser observed areas of Equestria. Given how particular dangers have developed without warning, I will be remaining in Ponyville with Twilight until a restoration of The Castle of the Two Sisters can be completed. From there, we hope to have a better grasp of the threats that may arise from the darker parts of our Kingdom."

A roar of applause came from the room, including one very soft clap and a series of curse words from Applejack.

While Twilight wasn't aware of this new decision, she was more than welcome to the idea. If nothing else it would be nice to have another alicorn to speak with.

"I'm more than happy to host you, Luna. You can stay here as long as you like."

Kelly conversely, didn’t even bother filling her plate after hearing the news, having other things on her mind.

“So, are we going to party it up every weekend? Is that what I’m hearing?”

Already sensing they were vearing into unstable Pinkie territory, Twilight tried playing off the question.

“I’ll always be happy to have you all over but every weekend-”

Sniff popped a bottle of champagne he pulled out for his orange juice and yelled out like a jackass, “Weekend party on the rooftop, whaaaat?!”

And just like that, along with loud cheers from those in attendance, went Twilight’s quiet weekends.

“Yeah… I guess we are.”

After the call for weekend parties was established, and the cheering died down, the real breakfast began.

It was the kind of gathering one would expect given the food and company. True, there was an added bonus of entertainment from Applejack, but as the effects of the pills started to die down and she got some food in her, she slowly started returning to her normal, pleasant self.

While Pinkie more than any pony mourned the loss of the goofy Applejack that came from painkillers, it was heartwarming to watch Lumberman feed Applejack on his lap. Especially after the sheer agony they’d seen her endure not too long ago.

Lumberman took things a step further by wiping her lips cleaned with a napkin.

"Goddamn, I can't take you anywhere. Look at the mess yer making."

Mildly embarrassed, Applejack tried to move her face out of his reach but was just as amused as everyone else by it.

"Gah! Stop it. Don't make me slap you. Ya-stop it! Ha!"

Twilight was entirely taken in by the display of affection the two shared with each other. Seeing how close those two were, she thought it was nearing that time to let the other girls know what had changed.

"Ahem," she called for everyone's attention. "I'm not sure what you all have planned for the day, but if it's okay, I'd like everypony to meet me up in my study when we're done eating. There are some things I need to put out. And Sniff, if you and every human would like to have some private space to discuss anything you’d like to keep amongst yourselves, you can use the dining hall here, or my throne room with the table map. We shouldn't take too long."

Cerb looked around the table and agreed there were some things that needed to be discussed.

"Uh, yeah. We can take the map room, I guess. Give us some time to get the champagne out of our systems."

Still holding AJ with one hand, Lumberman tipped up his glass of milk.

"Jokes on you. I'm good to go but low on gas."

It took a moment, but Cerb remembered something that might be of help.

"Hey… Would diesel from a backhoe work in your truck?"

Lumberman pulled his fork back from giving Applejack another piece of prench toast, and thought the suggestion over for a moment before offering a nod.

"Yeah. Why?"

Cerb started to laugh.

"Okay. So get this… Pinkie used her pony magic to randomly conjure an industrial sized backhoe to dig a burn pit and just left it there. Syphon that shit out, or use the rig for building. I dunno."

From across the table, Lumberman raised his glass, a large smile that only Pinkie could match hanging proudly on his face.

"You just made this man all sorts of happy, bro."

Seeing how the groups would be breaking up soon, Luna had one little small request to add.

“Granny Smith, if you don’t mind, could wait for a later time after we finish with Twilight’s discussion. We would like to speak with you privately concerning the recent events that have befell your household. You need not to be bothered with such other details that do not involve you directly.”

Granny Smith shrugged.

“Egh. Kinda figured as much. Suppose I might as well head back to the farm and take care of the chores if y’all ‘er gonna be keep’n ‘em busy all day.”

Following all the others, Lumberman carried in Applejack and set her down on a small bed of pillows.

"You gonna be alright? Need anything?"

Applejack rolled her eyes with a giddy smile at his concern.

"Right now, I just need this shit over with so we can go home. Don't take too long, would ya."

Bemused, Lumberman lifted her hat and scuffed up her hair, causing the mare to chuckle as she leaned into his hand.

"No doubt."

After Lumberman returned Applejack's hat and left the room, Twilight wasted no time getting right into it.

"Alright, everypony. First things first. I've noticed just how close everypony has been getting to our new human friends."

The entire room went silent, with many of them secretly having mini panic attacks. This was something Twilight was all too aware of, and decided to have some fun with it.

"Just like I hope to become with Peter." She perked up immensely at finally being able to say it out loud. "Because last night it was put to a vote, and the decision was made that we can be as close as we want to with any human we please.”

As expected, Pinkie was the first to react, jumping out of her seat, popping confetti and streamers everywhere.

“Yay! No more restrictions!”

As the others quickly began to process this new information, Twilight’s smile softened, though it came with a bit of a heavy heart.

“Now, with that being said, I also want to make a few things clear. The next being that I think I know why Celestia said we shouldn’t get too close to our new friends. I think she was trying to save us from what happened to me."

Luna turned to Twilight with a look of distress, thinking something might have developed either last night or this morning.

"What happened?" Luna's voice of concern was matched quickly by the other pony's expressions in the room.

Twilight sighed and turned her eyes to the beautiful book stand she had covered again and pulled the cloth off.

"I don't know if Celestia's experience was with a human as well, but I think she was trying to save us all from the heartache of losing a human companion… Because I started to fall in love with Peter and didn't realize it until after I had pushed him into taking Oven Fresh as his special somepony."

One by one, each pony around Twilight drew their gasps and awes. Some reacted first to the book stand, others towards Twilight's admission of falling in love, and others to the tragedy she created.

Regardless of their reactions, Twilight motioned for everyone to quiet down.

"Knowing what I know now, and after talking to Ovens about everything, I can see I'm not the only one. And for those of you here, I will tell you not to make the same mistake as me and let Celestia's fears or hesitation stop you. If you want to pursue a loving relationship with a human, you may. But, you should also know that before you start, remember that we have no way of knowing when they can be sent home or if they can return. So, there is no way of knowing how much time we will have with them."

With this revelation, Twilight noticed a somber change in the feeling of the room. More than likely, many were reviewing their reservations or ambitions for romanticizing a human, yet, sadly, there was still more news to give.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I think Peter said it best when he told Oven Fresh that he was here for a fun time, not a long time."

Shining probably felt the most sorry for his sister and wanted to know if there was anything he could do to help.

"So, Twi… What are you going to do if you want to be with Peter, but he's already with another mare?"

Suddenly there was a blush creeping in over Twilight's cheeks.

"I'm...actually going to be getting help from the other mare."

While Fluttershy and Rarity seemed almost excited at what Twilight was suggesting, one very confused Luna asked what the others were thinking, "You didn't threaten Oven Fresh, did you? I mean, we all like Peter, but there is—"

"No!" Twilight protested, mortified at the accusation. "Peter and her are only dating each other. They're not a committed couple, and since he needs so much attention, not to mention another pony watching his back for the next threat. She's going to try to make me one of the other mares he dates. We think that's going to help make him happy and help him work through his issues. After talking about it, we think this would be for the best if he's going to move past all his fears and dark thoughts haunting him right now."

After this latest development, surprisingly, of all the ponies, Rainbow Dash was the one to throw a fit.

"You're going to both date the same stallion at the same time? You're a princess, for crying out loud! Just tell Peter you're not gonna share and that the baker pony can find her own human. You found him first."

Twilight held back her laughter as best she could at her brash friend’s usual direct approach to problems. The fact she might have actually considered such an option for a brief moment also helped add to the humor.

"Rainbow, I'm not going to tell either one of those two what to do or who they can see. It was only after talking to her that I realized just how serious I can't be taking a relationship with Peter. Even if I were to fully fall in love with him and he loved me back and wanted to get married, we can't even have a foal together since he's not Equestrian."

Too lost in her own little world, Twilight failed to notice a look of shock and bewilderment from Fluttershy and Rarity. Twilight continued on explaining without skipping a beat.

"I mean, it took a lot for Peter to even consider dating a pony. So if he wants a family of his own, like I think I do someday, it wouldn't work for us. But that's not what we're here to talk about. What we are talking about is why I think we all, specifically, should be as close as we can with every human to protect our new friends. Because one way or another, for reasons we don’t fully understand, they have all been targeted for exploitation because of their suffering or marked for elimination by one method or another for refusing to fix their inner problems."

A series of worried looks overtook the group, and the vibe of the room changed dramatically. Yet, again, Rainbow Dash was the first to take an aggressive stance and stand against what she saw as a threat.

“If somepony is coming after Becky or any human else, you need to tell me right now. I’m not letting anything bad happen to Becky as long as I can help it.”

Twilight quickly saw this conversation getting out of hoof and went to calm her friends.

“Woah, hold on now. I think Becky is one of the few who is the most safe at the moment. Maybe Chris, too. But the others… I’m not so sure. But before any of you have any questions about the why or how, or even the who, I need to ask some very important questions.“

Knowing one of the easiest examples, if true, Twilight turned her focus to the biggest stallion in the room.

“Big Mac. I know you and Kelly have gotten to be very close since she arrived here. Even closer since you risked your life to keep her safe after the guards attacked her. But before she was attacked, were there any issues she was dealing with that would have likely left her with dark thoughts if she didn't deal with them or let you help her with them?"

Big Mac was put on the spot and didn't know what to think at first, left practically speechless, except this time unintentionally.

"Uh…" After a moment of trying to delay giving a reply, the reality hit that Kelly might still be in danger, and answering this question didn't mean giving up any of the dirty details. "Yeah… From what I can tell, Kelly had a long line of human stallions that didn’t treat her right. Didn’t really love her, and her own family wasn't much better. I think she's so used to being with others that weren't her friends and others who didn't love her that she forgot how to love herself… She doesn't think she can be loved. But I’ve been work’n hard on fix’n that.”

Twilight nodded, happy to hear of the potential progress being made.

“And if I had to guess, she didn’t accept your help until after she was nearly killed?”

Big Mac nodded, still having hard feelings about that day.

“Eyup… But even then, we still had to take it slow.”

Twilight sighed softly, recalling her own similar shortcomings.

“It’s been the same with the others. Cerb refused to properly treat his issues and only agreed to any kind of treatment after he helped Fluttershy find a cure for Becky. Benny similarly refused to seek help for everything he had to suffer through until he was forced to face his past and was nearly murdered by the Pony of Shadows. The more they resisted any attempt to help them overcome their own traumas, the more danger they face. But if you look at the other humans, they’re doing much better.”

The room doubled their focus on Twilight as she continued to explain.

“Becky dropped out of her medical school and gave up on trying to survive her illness. Now she’s teaching us what she knows about healthcare and being a doctor and has hope that there’s a cure to be found. Chris was awkward, shy, and struggled to reach out and connect to others.“ She turned to her student. "Starlight? How would you say Chris is doing? Has anything threatened his safety?”

Starlight was much in the same position as Big Mac now, though with a bit of a blush on her face as well.

“Chris has really opened up and is making lots of new friends. Plus, he's trying all sorts of new things he thought he’d never have the chance to do. And he seems very safe. I’ve made sure of that.”

Satisfied and missing some hints that something was off with Starlight, Twilight turned to Applejack with an obvious look of hope for what she had to say.

“And what about Lumberman?”

Still a bit sore, Applejack curled up slightly on her mound of pillows as she spoke.

“Lumberman… he… the poor fella came from a terrible family by the sounds of it. And if anything, he wants a family of his own, not just the one he has with his friends. And Granny Smith already made him an honorary member of the Apple Clan… And fuck me running if he ain’t doing so well that he’s been taking care of me instead. But I also wanna say my heart goes out to ya, Twilight. I’m sure y’all can tell how close me and Woody are. I mean, shit… I don’t even call him Lumberman no more, just Woody."

She almost brought Fluttershy and Rarity into the conversation but remembered to keep their privacy as requested. Besides, there was still plenty to stay focused on about her own ambitions.

"But, I’m not fix’n to share’em. And I don’t care if he’s a human and can’t give me a foal. He’s the stallion for me, and I hope he can find me human enough to let me be his human mare, or lady, or woman, or whatever title he wants to call me.”

Practically glimmering at the display before her, Luna sat up proudly to praise her brazen, loving ponies.

“Tis a brave thing to admit how one truly feels, Applejack. And if there are more of you here who feel the same, know that I support you one hundred percent. Even if… I am more than a bit envious of you all. Every single one of our human friends brings something completely unique and wonderful to our kingdom and has improved our lives because of them."

Pinkie jumped up and stood dramatically with a hoof raised in the air.

"Have no fear, Princess! My BenBen is here! And as part of my training regiment to get him into being the happiest human he can be, I can't think of a better way to help two friends at the same time than to set you both up on a date."

Rainbow Dash was hearing nothing but nonsense and had to push back.

"Is everypony slowly losing their minds? First, Twilight wants to share a coltfriend, and now Pinkie doesn't want to date Benny? Pinkie? You've been all over him when you haven't been trying to grab Cerb's lever to turn him into a golem. You were even the first one to even openly say you liked the idea of dating a human, for as far as I know. What gives?"

As only Pinkie could, she giggled helplessly.

"Wow. Yeah. I did say that, didn't I? But, well, as fun as dating Benny would be, I don't think he's really my type. A good friend for sure, but not really the kind of party animal I'm looking for. Also, I never even got close to finding Cerb's lever. Fluttershy stopped me every time before I could get close enough. How did it look, anyway?"

Rainbow Dash started to blush and became more defensive, remembering Cerb's nude form.

"What? Th-tha-tha-that's none of yer damn business!"

Rarity verbally stepped in to calm down the situation and draw any unneeded attention from Cerb’s...lever.

"I think the important thing to take away from all of this is that we are the only ones capable of taking care of them. The more they have come to know us, the more they have learned to trust us. From there, we only need to continue to help them in whatever way we can.“

In a sharp turn, Rarity quickly glared at Pinkie, whose face quickly retreated into her mane. Element of Generosity or not, Rarity wasn't letting up any of her claim on Cerb and would warn her friend of such infractions again.

“Which includes respecting their sensitivities and not to…” Something in her mind finally clicked. “Son of a bitch… Get him hard? That’s what Benny meant by working Cerb’s lever?“

In another sudden mood swing, Rairity furrowed her brow and sat rather cross, knowing the amount of discomfort and stress that joke had caused Cerb. Also, joke or not, she didn't find it funny.

“What an asshole.”

Ignoring Starlight’s guarded giggles, as well as Rarity's half-finished lecture, Pinkie finally decided to own up to her mistake.

"Yeah, Benny felt really bad about letting that joke go as far as it did. But he wouldn't tell me why it was bad. He changed the subject about how he wanted to go swimming. Or maybe he wanted to see me in a swimsuit? I don't know. Benny doesn't always like being direct when he has to explain things to me."

Comments about swim attire aside, Luna grinned and decided to let things play out as her friends saw fit.

"If you think it best, let Benny know that I would love to spend an evening with him. If even only to get to know him better."

With the less-than-savory issue finally put to bed, Pinkie suddenly started to get very excited, and her mind was already working in high gear to plan something out.

"Oou! Wait! An even better idea! Let's make it a double date! No! A double, double date!"

In not much time at all, Lumberman finally made his way down to the others.

“Aight, let’s do this. What’s going down?”

Opting to go first, Cerb cleared his throat to start things off.

“Needless to say, shit’s been crazy as of late. Granted, I’m largely, if not solely, to blame. So, let’s take this time to get everyone caught up with what’s going on. Anything that we need to know."

Lumberman grinned, obvious pride practically dripping from his every pore.

"I was made an honorary member of the Apple Family and started a construction company."

Suddenly all eyes were on him, and the room went silent, yet Lumberman took their reactions in stride.

"Yeah. Some asshole named Hard Hat was giving me shit for wanting different building supplies than what he's used to using. Then when it all got delivered, he started giving Applejack shit, jabbed his hoof in her chest, talking about how great he was or whatever. I almost lost my cool and cold-cocked the motherfucker. But, Applejack stepped in, put him in his place, and his whole crew quit… Now they work for me."

Sniff blinked a few times and let that all sink in.

"Alright. I'll get you in touch with Lyra. She knows how to work contracts for us if we start doing any kind of business around here. Apparently, she's some kind of delegate for exchanging services and shit for independent workers that are non-citizens. Also, I'm working part-time at the spa to raise some coin and started up my own marketing business. I’m going to work with the mayor on marketing the next Wonderbolts show that’s coming to town. Also, things got fixed up between me and Twilight. Which also brings me to another point I think I need to bring up.”

Over the next few minutes, Sniff gave his thoughts on everyone facing their fears or facing death. He recited the same examples and supported them with the same logic he shared with Ovens. No one questioned his theory and they all sat quietly as he made his case.

“And so, that’s how I see it,” Sniff finished up. “I’m not against the possibility that I’m wrong. I probably know the least about this place. However, it's hard not to see the correlation."

Despite all he said, there was a question on the tip of everyone's tongue about Sniff's intentions if his goal was to help ponies with their romantic problems. Regardless, Kelly was willing to offer her support.

"I get where you're coming from, but this world trying to kill us for being fucked up is a bit of a stretch. Although… I can't really refute how strong your case is. Working on fixing our worst habits wouldn’t hurt., and personally, I feel a lot better not whoring myself out over here. Big Mac doesn't treat me like a fuck toy and actually takes care of me. And because of him, I think I'm a better person… and honestly, I don't want to go back."

Hearing that, Becky looked like she had just been slapped.

"You don't want us to leave?"

Kelly rolled her eyes and groaned, knowing how what she said must have sounded.

"No. If they can find us a way back, then that's great. Especially for you. But I don't want to go back home and be the person I used to be." Seeing she was still on shaky ground, Sniff jumped in to help Kelly out. "I think it's safe to say that we all would like to find a way home, but I'm sure we all want to come back here despite everything we've been through."

Cerb could see the way things were escalating and stepped in to squash the potential finger-pointing.

"Look, we're stuck here indefinitely. That's all we know for sure. It's also entirely possible that Ben killed the one responsible for bringing us here. We might never leave this place, so we need to look out for each other as best we can, fix ourselves, and be ready for anything. This world might be great, and we have a huge advantage given to us… But even I thought being magic proof, or even mostly magic proof, would have kept me from getting hurt… I got stupid for a minute there. It won’t happen again. I know I'm not invincible here."

Benny raised an eyebrow at the frankly absurd statement of his friend.

"You really thought you were invulnerable? And do you really think we’re stuck here?"

Seeing no point in lying or dragging things out, Sniff was quick to counter.

“We probably are... The night Cerb had everyone freaking out because of his night terrors and Luna about snapped over it, I helped Twilight out, and she broke the fuck down, hard. So either she was so out of it, and she let it slip, or she was so down on herself that she made it sound worse than how things really are, but she has no clue how to get us home. So if she has any secrets, that was probably the biggest one."

That news hit Becky pretty hard.

"Fuck me… is she even trying, or does she know it’s a lost cause?"

Knowing the kind of pony Twilight was, Sniff sat up a little straighter.

"Yes, she had a fuck load of books over what I guess covers this kind of magic. But... it's probably a safe bet to assume she took a break the last few days to watch over Cerb. Thank god for that. Otherwise, how much worse would Cerb and the others have been hurt out there?"

The realization now weighing down on him, Benny dropped his face down onto his hands.

"Getting home should still be our top priority. If they can only do so much for us, we need to remind them that getting home is just as important as surviving… Keeping us safe from the dangers of the outside world isn’t going to save Becky"

Becky leaned back with a melancholy look on her face, trying to come to terms with all that was happening.

"I'm just trying not to die in the next few years… But, at the same time, looking back at everything… Probably better to die happy here than drunk and hopeless back home.''

She sharply pointed her finger at everyone in the room. Whatever they were going to interject with, she wasn't in the mood to listen.

"And I don't want to hear shit from anyone about it. I'm not running into the Everfree and trying to die. My fate was sealed from birth, that I wasn't meant to last. So, even if this herbal witchcraft brew can fix my lungs, my nerves are still withering away, and I'm still stuck with a slightly longer death sentence." Still reeling from the weight of everything, she leaned back and folded her hands in her lap. "Going home isn't going to save me from that, but… at least here I can do some good."

After saying her piece, she smiled weakly, taking some solace in the help she already provided.

“Even with my hands all fucked up and letting Cerb do all the cutting, I’m pretty sure Applejack wouldn’t have survived what happened to her without me there. So I can tough it out for however long they can keep me viable here.”

Chris, seemingly unphased by the rather somber tone the conversation had taken, shrugged.

"Unless we find a cure for that, too."

Becky rolled her eyes, not even humoring the suggestion.

“Don’t give me that kinda hope, Chris. I’m lucky enough to have this tea work for me.”

Undeterred, Chris shook his head disappointedly.

“We found out this tea works by accident. And if you’re thinking we can’t magic away your condition, you might be right, but you have to take in two considerations. One, that we’re not completely magic-proof. And two, something we all overlooked, something that Kelly proved to us…"

He paused for dramatic effect.

"Potions are a lot more effective on us than spells.”

Kelly’s eyes widened at the obvious oversight.

“Holy shit. He’s right. Jesus… I knew I was drunk that night, but not so drunk I'd forget about that.“ She shook her head for a moment. "Well, not forget, but you know what I mean.”

Chris leaned over the table with an aura of confidence shining brightly.

“At its strongest, magic can mostly work on us at our weakest. But even a potion they threw together in the time it takes to make a mixed drink, that potion took you down to… what? A third or a quarter of your body weight? So even a ratio of being only sixty-six to seventy-five percent effective, that should be at least enough to make your neuro-degenerative disorder at least non-lethal. And who knows? Given enough treatments, who’s to say it can’t be cured over time?”

Invigorated, Cerb felt another sense of purpose starting to build up in him.

“So, here’s my tentative plan. We all do whatever we can to fix ourselves up however we can, keep any other shadow fuckers from turning our nightmares against us, then take on finding a cure for Becky’s lung disease. Once we get that figured out, we can move on to stopping her degenerating nerves. In the meantime, Twilight and the others can focus on finding a way home for us. Anyone against that plan?"

There was a quiet consensus around the table until Benny spoke up.

“I’m down, but if it involves another trip into the Everfree Forest or literally anywhere else that’s dangerous, we do a lot more planning and make sure we have more training and support. We got fucking lucky out there last time. And if there’s anything I’ve learned about this place, it’s that the rules can be bent and broken, and not just by us. With a little work, we can help these ponies become stronger and more capable versions of themselves, especially with Pinkie. True she may have limits, she can’t get me a Wi-Fi hotspot, but she pulled C4 out of nowhere when I mentioned it in passing during our training."

He had an uneasy shiver run up his spine at the thought of Pinkie running around with C4 unsupervised. And that was without considering what other lethal implements she could pull out of the ether.

"Plastic explosives aren’t a thing that exists in this world, and Rarity and Fluttershy are probably the two least violent and destructive characters of the cast. And yet somehow, Cerb’s got them out there kicking ass like they trained under Master Roshi. We need to start coming up with plans on how to get our friends ready for the next big threat and whatever else this world wants to throw at us."

As the group all nodded in agreement, there was one more thing Becky had to offer. Something vital for everyone's safety.

"We also need to be very careful about what we let our guardians come in contact with. Lumberman, I only told Cerb, Luna, and Celestia, but I didn't want to pull out the slivers just because of an infection. They were growing. Not very fast, but who knows what they could have done to her if they stayed inside."

Had it not been Becky just now saying this, Lumberman probably would have been livid.

"So that's what you weren't telling us last night? Why?"

Quickly jumping in, Cerb took over for this one.

"Because she was freaking out. Even Twilight could barely hold her still, which is why she had me step in. Telling her that the infection could kill her, was easier to scare her into holding still than telling her that Timberwolf shards were growing inside of her hooves. Which only further stresses my point. Things are getting worse out there, and they need to be ready for whatever comes our way. Truth is, they might need us more than we need them if they’re bleeding and mortal like us."

A noble huffed up in protest outside of Celestia’s throne room.

"What do you mean Day Court has been canceled again? This is three days in a row we have been put off. The delegates from Saddlearabia will be here soon, and we still have to fix the problem with the flower arrangements."

A female pegasus from the Lunar Guard, with too high of a rank to be standing watch, repeated herself, "She's not having court today.”

The noble persisted, “I simply will not stand for this. You will let me in, or I will—”

“You will what?” The Lunar Guard growled as she reached for her sword. “Please do tell me what you’ll do if I don’t let you through?”

Another Solar Guard, a male unicorn of much lower rank, quickly spoke to de-escalate the situation by answering for the noble.

“If you are going to speak with Princess Luna so that your concerns can be heard in a timely manner, I suggest you visit her in Ponyville. That is where she will be staying for the foreseeable future.”

Sadly, instead of resolving the issue, the noble was more taken aback by the suggestion.

“Ponyville? You expect me to travel to such an underdeveloped location and risk mingling with the drudging peasants? Even the other Princess is barely enough to raise the caliber of servant class peons that live there.”

The female pegasus guard’s blood started to boil, and she gripped the sword with her feathers.

“Specialist? Did this noble just call my daughter a drudging peasant and a servant-class peon?”

The unicorn guard started to panic in a way that he broke his military bearing, knowing full well he needed to act fast.

“Sergeant Major Cutter. No. I don’t think—”

Cutter, ignoring her subordinate completely, tugged on the hilt of her sword so the brilliant shine of her blade reflected into view as she marched towards the noble. Pushing him back with her death glare, she hoped he would try something stupid.

“Disobeying Her Majesty's orders? Threatening her guards? Both high misdemeanors and potential crimes against the crown. And then to insult my baby girl as if she was some serf-class peasant for you to look down on?”

The noble, being the coward he was, turned to hightail it out of there. Unfortunately, getting caught in the tight grip of Cutter’s other wing around his tail, he was jerked back to be spun eye-to-eye with the enraged guard.

“Madam, I really—”

Cutter pushed him down onto his seat, silencing whatever excuse he tried to make.

“I could have let you off with a warning because I know how arrogant you elites can be. But you crossed the line.“ She drank in the fear of death in his eyes. “You are hereby banned from setting hoof on royal grounds and will not breathe within fifty yards of her presence, or you’ll wish I could breathe fire to burn you out of existence. Are we clear?”

The noble could only squeak out his reply.

“Crystal.”

Cutter released the noble and let him flee; his tail tucked between his legs.

As the entrance to the throne room had been cleared and any danger adverted, the unicorn guard sighed.

“Sergeant Major—“ He froze as Cutter turned back with the same glare, and he rethought what he was going to say. “—Is it really true she can breathe fire?”

Cutter seated her sword back in its sheath firmly and returned to her post.

“It runs in my husband's side of the family, not mine.“ She cocked a grin. “I don’t make the flames, Specialist... I tame them.”

Amidst the still tense and hostile atmosphere, a surprisingly merry voice greeted Cutter from down the hall.

“I seem to recall you getting promoted for being too good for standing guard at these chambers.”

Cutter chuckled but made sure to mind her bearings as she replied with a salute.

“Well, I seem to recall being removed from these chambers for my demeanor, not my valor.”

Celestia gave a subtle bow to Cutter's salute.

“Yes, I do believe it was that fiery temper of yours.“ She stopped and grinned at the junior guard. “Don’t let Sergeant Major fool you. Her lungs are full of fire, no different than her family of bakers.”

She tried not to grin too hard and make the poor junior Solar Guard any more nervous than Cutter already left him feeling.

“And speaking of your family, little Oven Fresh appears to take after her mother as much as she has her father. Something I will brief you on later. But for now, since you are here, Cutter, I require your services for a special assignment now that I no longer need to be bothered with flower arrangements. If you would follow me in. And Specialist… Don't hurt anypony, but also make sure we aren’t bothered either."

Cutter followed Celestia into her throne room and closed the door behind them, leaving the remaining guard to finally let out a breath as the stress of the situation finally faded.

"What are your orders?” Cutter asked, maintaining her professional decorum. “If it has anything to do with that noble, please, just give the word."

Celestia laughed for a moment, but it was clear her laugh was to give way to something more serious.

"No… but first, I want to thank you for staying behind as long as you have. Staggering your Lunar Guard subordinates as opposed to the overnight relocation my sister requested has not gone unappreciated."

With her gratitude clearly expressed, it was time to get down to business.

"I need you to locate a pony for me. And there will be no need for violence. She is not to be put under arrest. I merely need her assistance with something, and to do so means we need her willing to cooperate. Can you do that for me?"

Cutter didn't even bat an eye at the request.

"Yes, Princess. Who am I retrieving for you?"

With a simple flash of magic, Celestia brought up an old photograph to Cutter’s face.

"The mare is an old student of mine, the stage magician Trixie Lulamoon. Her magic skills didn't develop to anything impressive until just recently. Tell her that I require her expertise and I'm sure that will be enough to persuade her. If not… find another way to persuade her...nonviolently, of course."

Cutter stood ready, though a little uncertain about what was being asked of her, given Celestia's careful choice of words.

“To be clear, Princess. Are you requesting her assistance, or demanding it?”

Adopting her more royal demeanor, Celestia answered in a firm tone.

“I am requesting her willing participation. If she cannot be persuaded, then inform her that there are a list of charges that will not be waived without her assistance. If that doesn’t work, then you have my permission to detain her. Are we clear?”

Her mission now clearly laid out, Cutter saluted, “Yes, Princess.”

With the orders made clear, Celestia smiled and returned to her throne to continue on with her work.

“Splendid. Last that was heard of her whereabouts shows she has spent some time in the small villages south of Las Pegasus in the San Palomino Desert. Now, I know we are running short on guards while we continue through this—“ She drew a deep breath and swallowed her anger. “—transitional period of having the Lunar Guard relocate. So, you will be limited to only two members of the Solar Guard to assist you in your search.”

Quickly thinking about the current status of ponies available, Celestia felt confident with their numbers.

“Whoever you see fit, you may have access to them for this discreet mission. If anypony has any questions that you cannot answer with your charming demeanor, tell them they can speak to me directly and see if my demeanor is any more pleasant than yours.”

Cutter nodded, beginning to understand just how serious this request must actually be.

“Understood. Moving out with your orders, Princess.”

Lumberman returned to the dining hall with Applejack in his arms as well as Big Mac and Kelly escorting them.

“Alright, everyone, hold yer breath, or just don't breathe too hard. I'm carrying a delicate flower."

Applejack tried to put on an angry scowl but couldn't hold back the laugh that snuck out.

"Oh, kiss my ass, Woody. Mah’ hooves are hurt'n again, is all."

Lumberman grinned, glad to have his old Apple Hat back to mess with.

"Since Apple Bloom is taken, what flower do you want me to call ya?"

Mildly miffed at the joke, Applejack pulled a hoof back like she was going to hit him.

"Keep it up, Woody. Soon as these hooves heal, yer gonna get it."

Unintimidated by the threat, Lumberman made a cutesy face.

“It’s gonna be hard not to laugh when you start smacking me up with all them love taps like Onyx gave Cerb.”

From across the table, Onyx shouted back at the unwarranted jab.

“Hey! I’m sitting right here!”

Sitting adjacent to to the armored Earth pony, Rainbow snorted.

“Yeah, sitting on your ass. Right where Cerb left ya.”

Helix busted out laughing, “You gonna take that sitting down, Champ?“ He turned to Cerb. “Hey! Onyx wants a rematch!”

Not wanting any further harm for Cerb, Fluttershy answered on Cerb’s behalf.

“Oh, I’m sorry. He still has an injury with his leg that isn’t done healing, and it wouldn’t be a fair fight.”

Wanting to get out of what was quickly turning into an unfavorable situation, Onyx sat back in his chair and took the easy out.

“Of course. I wouldn’t want to put Cerb in an unfair fight.”

Still protecting her man as best she could, Fluttershy agreed.

“I don’t think Cerb would want that either. Maybe if both his legs were injured and he broke one of his hands? That would probably be a fair fight, but I’d never allow him to hurt himself by hitting you again like that.”

Benny sprang up from his seat and started to run around the tables.

“Oooooooh! She said he ain’t got no nipples!”

Every human started laughing, while everypony, on the other hand, was simply lost.

After a good laugh and the realization that the joke had gone over every pony's head, Benny corrected himself.

"Okay. None of you got that. So, how about tonight I make it up to y'all by throwing a house party? Music and movies and drinking games. Sound like a plan?"

Naturally, Pinkie, ever the party animal, did an action dive over the table and rolled up on her hind legs next to Benny.

"Yeah! Human movies are great! And we need a post-war-party party!"

Kelly smirked, thinking that a chance to unwind and engage in some good old-fashioned stupid and reckless behavior was just what they needed.

"Yeah, and you better invite everyone who helped with your cluster fuck out there. Not just us."

Benny replied with only a hint of insult, "No shit, Sherlock. But… that means getting the house ready. And for that, I'm going to need some pony’s help."

Pinkie gasped in anticipation. Countless ideas for activities, pastries, and general festive fun popped in her head like freshly heated corn kernels.

However, still feeling ever so petty at her for waking him and looking for some revenge, Benny turned to Pinkie.

"Say, Pinkie, is your sister Maud in town by any chance?”

Pinkie cocked her head to the side with all her excitement leaving her body, looking almost like she’d been slapped in the face at the change of subject.

“Maud? No. She’s all the way in-Hey!”

Benny feigned a remorseful acceptance, seeing Pinkie finally got the joke he was implying.

“Fine... You’ll do.”

More than a little offended, Pinkie sat cross and turned away with her nose in the air.

“Humph! Maybe I don’t want to be your party pony anymore.”

Still enjoying his little game, Benny faked a mournful sigh.

“Awe… Does that mean I have to eat all my Oreos by myself?”

In an immediate response, Pinkie bolted up and latched onto Benny’s back with all the glory a party pony could emanate.

“Fuck yeah! Party’s on everypony! Oh! But, Luna! Get some sleep and leave your evening open before the party tonight!”

Luna gave a soft smile, greatly enjoying the pink pony’s boundless enthusiasm.

“Of course, Pinkie. I’ll be ready.”

Now full and ready to move on, Lumberman started off towards the door.

“Hey, Benny. I’mma follow you back to the house and gas up, then take Apple Hat back to her place. Hope the crew isn’t too pissed off for me not showing up and getting a little work done on the place before… uh… when we doing this?”

Still carrying Pinkie on his back and heading out, Benny answered.

“Let’s make it eight. Pull an all-nighter.”

Seeing her chance, Fluttershy stood up as most of the others had already started walking out.

“I was going to escort Zecora back to her home. I’m helping her carry some of the supplies back. Then we can get started on working on a better cure for Becky. Plus, I’ve been waiting for days for her to get back so we can catch up after so long.”

Rarity stood up, not ready to confront Cerb with the potential new problems that may lay ahead.

“With all the time I’ve been away, I’m going to fall behind on a few orders if I don’t try to catch up. And, come to think of it, Shining, dear, do you think you could spend some time with Justin to help him with getting ready for when we depart to the Crystal Empire?"

Eagerly nodding, Shining stood, emboldened to help his future guest.

"Oh, Cerb. You're going to love it there. The weather is great, the ponies are nice, and you'll be staying with us the whole time… How many beers can you bring?"

As the two discussed their future plans...and possible drunken game nights, Rainbow Dash nudged Becky.

"You mind getting caught up with them about the Crystal Empire? I need to make a stop out in town to grab something."

Knowing she had nothing else better to do for a while, Becky shrugged.

"Might as well. What I know doesn't cover all the nitty gritty details."

Given the all-clear, Rainbow Dash flew over to Twilight's side.

"Hey, Twilight. Could I get those hundred bits from the bet? I kind of really need them."

While Twilight gave Dash possibly the flattest stare imaginable, Starlight turned to Chris.

"How about you escort Nurse Redheart home? I was going to have Twilight help with some of the projects I was working on. And if it works, do you think I could borrow Lumberman's phone?"

Chris's smile grew wider.

"Dude, he would love that… Or at least... No, Applejack could work it for him. Yeah, I can get that for you."

Another thought came to Starlight, and she pulled Chris down to whisper in his ear.

"After everything Red has done for us, I doubt the girls would mind if you gave her a little attention on the side." She pulled back with a sly grin as she quickly veered into more mature territory. "That's not my pick for you. Just saying she deserves something special. Even if it's just a special massage."

Wearing a neutral smile to hide his aroused excitement as he walked over to Nurse Redheart, Chris replied, "Yer terrible."

In the sudden stir of everyone splitting off, Big Mac nudged Kelly, trying to get her attention.

“If yer not busy, would ya like to join me on the farm for chores?”

Despite the mention of chores, Kelly looked around the room of bodies quickly thinning out.

“I could go down there, if you let me.”

Seeing everyone else making plans, Sniff stood up and straightened out his clothes.

“Well, then. If you all are gonna stay busy all day. I might as well get out there and earn some coin.”

Rainbow Dash heard the mention of coin and fluttered over to nudge Sniff’s shoulder.

“Don’t work too hard there, bud. You still got those thousand bits Prince Tin Foil owes ya.”

Across the table, Shining cringed into a sulk.

“Fuck… I don’t even know what that word means, but fuck.”

Somehow, the guards were left with no standing orders, leaving Onyx unsure of what was expected of them.

“Uh, Princess-ess… What are our orders for the day?”

Luna turned her attention to the guards.

“We’ve all had a hard week so far. If it’s alright with Twilight, I think you all deserve some time off.”

Twilight looked over at the guards with an absent-minded expression, her mind too focused on a mixture of future plans along with still reeling from her recent confessions.

“Uh? I don’t see why not. Get some rest for tonight.”

Satisfied, Thunder Glide strode up next to Shining Armor.

“Prince, may I make a special request?”

Shining nodded at the guard.

“Of course. What can I do for you?”

All eyes now on her, Thunder Glide stood at attention and made her request.

“Sir, I respectfully request a transfer to accompany Cerberus and Becky so that I may lead their protection detail." She nervously eyed Fluttershy and Rarity, who were waiting to walk out together. "I believe it would be in their best interests to have somepony with them that is familiar with their capabilities and vulnerabilities who isn't also assigned to them as a sponsor. Having me there would allow them to focus on their day-to-day and specialized needs."

In the first few brief moments of silence that followed, Cerb could see that his two caretakers were of two minds on the request, so he gave his opinion on the matter.

"If me and Becky are going to be busy with Flutters, Rarity, and Dash, then I'd like at least one of them there I already know and trust." He turned and winked at Fluttershy and Rarity, quickly quashing any possible protests. "Plus, we need equal numbers to train with."

Helix stood up, a sudden burst of determination moving him to speak.

"I would also like to put in my request to transfer as well. With the addition of the Lunar Guard joining us here, there will be plenty of coverage for the castle and the remaining humans… Also, I've already started my training with Cerb… It would be a great loss to abandon the progress we've already made by sparing together."

Cerb laughed, wondering what kind of trend Thunder Glide might have started.

"Yeah. Wouldn't hurt having another drinking buddy with us."

Luna gave her blessing with a bow.

"I think that is a wonderful idea. I'll sign off on the transfer papers tonight." She turned her attention to Onyx and Swift Sails. "And would you like to remain here with us, or would you prefer to return to Canterlot?"

Onyx huffed, putting his pride out on full display.

“I’m going where the action is; that’s here. And if Cerberus is leaving, who better to take his place than the Champ? That, and Cerb said I should train with Chris… I trust his word and want to see if he’ll run me through the ring. Maybe have a rematch.“

He turned to Swift Sails, wondering what the last member of his squad wanted.

“What about you, lightweight?”

Swift Sails looked around the room until her eyes landed on Sniff, and she smiled warmly, making him groan with his reply.

“I swear to God, if you say carrot cake.”

Swift Sails laughed, both at the comment and the fact she was still owed a whole carrot cake.

“That’s not the only reason. Geez. Give me a break, would ya? This job is awesome! Escorting dignitaries that aren’t a bunch of jerks, and yes, buying me carrot cake. But I got to fight Timberwolves alongside all the Elements, two princesses, a prince, and Sergeant Major’s infamous fire-breathing daughter! Are you kidding me! I’ve learned and done more these last few days than I have my entire career in Canterlot. And I fought Tirek there! Please! Permanent transfer of duty if you can do it!“

She turned and looked at Cerb, a less mischievous smile on her face.

"Besides. If Thunder Glide gets to train with Cerberus while he's away, I at least want to be here when she gets back."

A short chuckle escaped Luna at the strong comradery that had developed among the group.

“Then it's settled. I'll see to it that you remain here."

With their positions now laid out, Swift Sails opted to cozy up to Sniff.

"Well, then. Would you care for an escort? I literally have nothing else to do."

Sniff shrugged, trying not to show how happy he was to keep this helpful guard at his side for the foreseeable future.

"Sure, but no need to come on as strong today." He instantly had a lot of scenarios run through his head. "No, wait… If I say ‘I forgot my keys,’ that means I need you to come on strong."

Becky seemed to be the only one surprised by this.

"Why does Sniff get a bodyguard?"

Hoping to avoid any speculation, Sniff went with the most likely of acceptable answers.

"Because we're three out of seven in terms of almost getting killed… That and I'm too pretty to walk alone."

Only Chris really knew enough to guess and wasn't going to leave his new brony-friend hanging.

"Sniff knows the least about this place and barely learned anything from all those women's self-defense classes he volunteered for. So, not to sound like a dick, but pretty-boy needs a babysitter holding his hand if Twilight or Oven Fresh can't be with him."

Becky gave Sniff a good look up and down, paying special attention to his physique...or lack thereof.

"Okay. You make a good point. My bad."

Even Cerb thought well enough to give some support.

"For Christ's sake. I need two escorts to go to bed at night. Leave him alone about it. A little extra security for us right now isn't a bad idea. Still, I don't recommend any of us wandering off alone until we have a better understanding of the threats we're facing."

As the group all agreed with the request, Becky then thought to ask a poignant question.

"What about Lumberman taking Applejack home or Chris taking Nurse Redheart back to her place?"

Cerb nodded, conceding her point, but at least had a counter.

"Both of them can at least fight. And Lumberman has a whole construction crew at AJ’s place." He turned to Chris. "What about you?"

For this one, Starlight answered.

"Prim Posy will be waiting for them there, so he wouldn't be alone. And I can escort him once I'm done with Twilight."

Onyx grumbled rather irritably, getting tired of the chit-chat that was eating up his time to speak with his new coach.

"I'll escort them there. Give me a chance to get to know the guy."

Cerb looked to be relieved, finally able to let go of some of the safety concerns he’d been worried about for a while being taken seriously.

"Thanks. And Chris, I know it's been a minute, and you don't hit the bag like you used to, but if you could show this guy a thing or two, I'd owe you one."

Remembering how the walk with Derpy all but kicked his ass, Chris looked Onyx in the eye for a moment. There was a lot of potential there, plus, without Starlight joining him, he figured he could still be safe with this Earth pony.

"Sure. I'm ready when you are."

Midnight Flash, with Ralph, walked up to Lumberman and Applejack, looking about ready to stand and salute purely on reflex.

"If you would like, we can alternate standing guard at your residence."

Thinking it over, especially given all that had happened in the last few days, Applejack gave a long exhale.

"I'd mighty appreciate it, fellas."

However, despite AJ giving the go-ahead, Lumberman had a different mindset on their proposal.

"You two standing watch at the house tonight? Nah, fuck that. Find two others to stand that watch. Yer gonna party with us. After that, though, yeah, you guys are cool."

As Lumberman carried Applejack out to his truck and the rest began to go their separate ways, Twilight trotted out behind Sniff. With so much fear and excitement running through her mind, she could barely keep any control over her volume.

"Peter, do you have a second?" She said, a little louder than needed in the now mostly empty room, not helped by the everpresent echo of the castle.

She held her breath when both Sniff and Swift Sails stopped and looked at her curiously.

"It'll be quick. I promise."

Respecting the request for privacy, Swift Sails bowed her head respectfully and let Twilight lead Sniff off to her study, where she ran into Luna and Starlight.

"Excuse me, but do you mind giving just us two a moment alone?"

Luna smiled but then looked to the window.

"I suppose what I wished to speak of can wait till this evening. Heaven knows I should probably be resting right now. I will see you all in a few hours."

Starlight started to follow Luna out.

"Take your time Twilight. I'm in no rush."

As soon as the two left the room as requested, looking concerned, Twilight trotted over to Sniff’s chair.

“Peter, take a seat. I’d like to pick up where we left off last night after my apology and reviewing your concerns of ponies trying to get closer to you... as well as about something else.”

Slowly, Sniff took his seat, though he looked apprehensive about doing so.

“Twilight, I want to help you understand this all better, but I already screwed things up with you once. Things are different now that I’m with Ovens, and I know you—”

His words were unexpectedly silenced by Twilight jumping onto his lap and pressing him back into the chair with her wings and legs wrapped around him, nearly smothering him with her affection.

"Thank you."

While the courteous thing to do would be to return the gesture, Sniff was hands-free from the embrace with his arms off to the side.

"Woah. What's going on here?"

Twilight didn't pull back from what she thought was an appropriate display of affection.

"Your gifts. I opened them last night. Thank you. They're all…" She gave a happy sigh. "I love them."

Now feeling a little more comfortable about the situation, Sniff finally returned the hug.

"I'm glad you like them. And I'm happy to have you back on good terms."

Twilight turned and sat across Sniff's legs. Not close enough, she leaned her side against his chest with her muzzle resting against his throat.

"As much as I love them, they also make me feel terrible for being so stupid… For thinking that I shouldn't allow myself to get too close to any of you… especially you, Peter. Which might have played a part in why I pushed you away."

Sniff laid his arm around Twilight and gently rubbed his other hand over her shoulder.

"You didn't push me away. I just thought—" He suddenly put her words into proper context with her current position on his lap. "Twilight? Do you mean—"

"Yes," Twilight answered the obvious question. "I didn't realize it at first, but the more time you spent with me, how much you helped me… all the trust and faith you put in me. I didn't let myself remember the fact that it's not just other species that visit Equestria and develop crushes on ponies… Sometimes the ponies start to fall for the visitors."

Now Sniff knew he really stepped in it, and there was no way to easily step back out.

"Twilight—"

Not giving Sniff a chance to interrupt her again, Twilight continued her confession.

"Which makes me so glad I talked to Oven Fresh this morning. She really is a wonderful pony. I can see why you started to fall for her. But, I trust her and agree with her take on this. After all, if you are here for a short time, we should make it a fun time."

It was at this point Sniff's original fears of Twilight and Oven Fresh butting heads turned to a bigger danger of them joining forces.

"What exactly did Oven Fresh tell you?" He asked with a well-warranted amount of trepidation.

Shifting tones, Twilight started to playfully trace her hoof up and down Sniff's chest.

"That you've been having a hard time and needed somepony to lean on. That you want to help other ponies, and you need somepony to be close to… That you need some intimacy in your life, but you're also afraid of hurting us because of it.”

She found herself lost in his presence. That alluring scent of clovers and sea salt, the softness of his hands still holding her, and all the wonderful qualities that he shared with her since reaching out.

“Then she said that she wants you to be able to date other ponies while you're here. Annnnnnd she suggested that we have a night together in Canterlot. Just you and me—" She froze nervously, letting her hoof hang in place just under his pecs. "—if you'd still like to, of course."

If that was all she was asking for, Sniff could agree to that, even though he really needed to know what all Twilight was told, especially in regards to more intimate matters. That, and how much did he really care for Twilight? He did want to be closer to her. He still trusted her more than any other pony. But was that all there was to it?

Damn this weakness that compelled his actions.

"I can't believe she pushed you onto me so fast. But, at least that gives us plenty of time to plan for Canterlot. I'll let you pick where you want us to go."

A squee pierced the center of the study, where Twilight celebrated her small victory as she bearhugged him.

"I'm so excited. My first real date. My first real sorta-special somepony. Not that you're a pony, but you know what I mean."

She jumped down from his lap and seemed to move about the desks with no direction or destination in mind.

"Is there anything special you would like… Oh… right. I would have to do the planning for us, wouldn’t I?”

Sniff tried to hold a straight face but couldn’t and ended up laughing for a few seconds at the sheer enthusiasm she was showing. It was positively adorable.

“Yeah, I don’t know what there is to do around there. But remember what this trip is really about."

Knowing full well what her tour had turned into, Twilight rolled her eyes.

"I know, but that's all going to be one night when you think about it. I'll show up to the other meetings with the delegates, but they don't need me there. They're just like I used to be and want to get Celestia's attention. I'd rather have yours."

Sniff chuckled to himself, happy to see the positive change in the purple pony princess.

"Well, that's a nice change to hear. And not that I'm so terrible to look at, but at least now that you're not looking at her, you can start looking forward."

A low creek caught his attention. Hearing it, he stood up and walked towards one of Twilight's desks.

"Did Ovens tell you that it's probably for the best that we try to keep this quiet?"

He picked up a quill and started writing something down.

"Because even though I reached that point where I'm willing to say okay and try to enjoy the company of a mare. My friends—" He handed the note to Twilight. "—save one that I know of, aren't big on the idea. So, if we can try to keep things—"

The door to the study swung open under Twilight's magic control, just as the note instructed her. With the door open, Luna, Starlight, and Spike fell into the room, having been pressed against the door so tightly, eavesdropping on Twilight’s proposal.

"—private," Sniff finished explaining. "Not that it's really an option anymore."

Shaken by the sudden fall, Starlight stood up with Luna on her back.

"Sorry. Luna told me about the gifts and… I kind of figured this was going to happen."

Spike, seemingly unaffected by the fall, stood up and dusted himself off.

"Come on. Really? Sniff was just working his moves on all the other mares to see what would work on Twilight."

Sniff facepalmed, though whether it was on Spike’s poor handling of the situation or the fact he’d somehow started to corrupt the innocent little dragon wasn't clear.

"Goddamnit, Spike. Yer not even close… How much did you all hear?"

Luna, now back on her hooves, smirked.

"That you're here for a fun time, not a long time."

Sniff took a deep breath and gathered himself mentally for the tricky situation he now needed to navigate.

"Is this gonna be a constant thing? This is… One, two, then-no, four times I know I've been spied on. No… fifth. Pretty sure it's been five."

Quickly dropping her smirk, Luna looked shocked at the high count.

"Twas not our intention to spy on you specifically. We were more excited for Twilight and wanted to hear her bag herself such a strapping young stallion."

Concerned for Sniff's sensitivities, Twilight spoke up to lower their expectations.

"No-no. We're just going to date. We're not committing to anything serious. Also, I'm not the only pony Sniff is dating."

Sniff double-facepalmed and turned away, expecting the look of shock and anger from Luna.

"Oh, my god. Fucking kill me now. Kill me before the hate mobs storm the castle and burn me at the stake."

Now visibly concerned, Luna stormed into the room, ready to put down any hostilities towards Sniff.

"I would never allow for such a thing… but are you dating Oven Fresh while dating Twilight?" She asked with a sympathetic tone.

Not being blind to the obvious, Twilight could instantly see this going up in flames like Sniff was afraid of and immediately set about fixing it.

"Think of it as his special talent. Not just dating, but helping others by getting close to them. And he does better, emotionally, when he's around others. So, Oven Fresh and I agreed that it was in Peter's best interest to have him date me as well… That and I really want to date him, too. I mean. Just look at him. He's-"

"Alright." Sniff was getting overwhelmed by the amount of support and praise he wasn't expecting. "This is coming from the guy whose new to this world, but is dating more than one girl at a time some social taboo or a crime against the state here?"

It was clear that Twilight had to answer since all eyes were on her.

"Um… I guess so long as you're not going behind somepony's back, it should be fine. But there's no laws against it."

Surprisingly, Starlight, of all ponies, had something to add.

"Come to think of it, you might be surprised how willing a mare is to share a stallion."

Somehow that told Sniff more than he needed to know. Whether that was good or bad was a matter for another time.

"Duly noted. And with that. Twilight, I leave the planning up to you. I, however, have a bodyguard waiting outside for me. Everyone else… I'm sure I'll see you tonight."

Before Sniff could leave, Spike jogged up to Sniff, clearly with something on his mind.

"Before you go, can we talk please? Man to man?"

Sniff swallowed his frustration, remembering that he already agreed to this.

"Yeah. Walk and talk, little inferno."

"Okay, I need your help."

Sniff could only assume how trivial the request was going to be, but humored him in spite of it.

"Sure thing, Pyro. What'cha need?"

Spike took a deep breath and let go of all the emotional strain he had been carrying.

"You’ve got girls fawning over you everywhere you go, and I lost the mare I loved… But if you can get Twilight to agree to share you with another mare, I know you can help me find a pony who will love me."

And it was in that moment whatever force kept Sniff’s mind on track derailed, as in that moment, he was totally lost.

"Okay. Back up a second. Who did you lose, and how?"

Revisiting his disappointment, Spike sulked deeply.

"I was in love with Rarity… but it's obvious that she loves Cerberus… And I can't even blame her." Despite his efforts, the little dragon couldn't hide how emotionally crushed he was. "She… She wants him. I've seen it. She doesn't want me. And Cerb is… so much better than me. I can't compete with that."

Sniff's heart sank, and he did the only thing he could think of and pulled Spike in for a bro-hug.

"I'm so sorry, bro. Trust me, I know how that feels… What do you need?"

Welcoming the embrace, Spike held tight.

"I just want to know what you know. I want to find somepony else."

Sniff let go of the hold he held on Spike so they could talk man to man.

"I know enough to where you could have probably anyone you want. But are you sure Rarity and Cerb is a real thing? Maybe you misread the situation or something?"

Spike looked away, not willing to allow himself to have any hope for Rarity again.

"I don't know if he feels the same way about her, but I'm not wasting my time on waiting for her anymore."

Stunned, Sniff stood up and walked over to his window.

"Spike… you're so much farther ahead in the game than other guys by moving on, but I also don't want to tell you to walk away from Rarity if that really is the girl you want. Because… I… dude… I don't know how many of us are considering hooking up with the ponies here. And sure Cerb is probably lonely, but I don't know if he'd actually consider dating Rarity… I'm barely convinced on what I'm doing, and I'm dating two mares now."

Spike jumped on the bed and sat with his feet over the side.

"I think I know what you mean about Cerb. I know he cares about Rarity, but he seems to care about Fluttershy just as much as they both do for him.“

For a moment he stopped as a thought quickly entered his head before he turned and gave Sniff a weird look.

“Unless… do you think they’re both dating him like Twilight and Oven Fresh are both dating you?”

For a moment, Sniff had to stop and gave that question some serious thought.

“I have no clue. Maybe everyone is secretly dating each other and were all too blind and stupid to catch on. I seriously have no idea what’s really going on anymore in regards to this. Because when we all got here, we were all on the same page about what we would or wouldn’t do. But now… I don’t even want to ask the others what’s going on with them. But that’s got nothing to do with you, and I shouldn’t be putting it on your plate. You came to me with questions. So...“ He joined Spike on the bed. “I’ll help you out as much as I can. But first, tell me about you and Rarity.”

Spike rolled his eyes at returning to the subject, old feelings turning to something more bitter.

“If you would have asked me two days ago, I would have a million things to say about her. And, I guess all those good things haven’t changed how I feel about her as a friend, but that’s all she’s ever treated me as. No matter how much I helped her or saved her, she’s never seen me as anything but a friend. Now though… I don’t want to keep waiting to see if she’s willing to—“ He sulked like a defeated man and sighed. “—do everything for Cerb that I would have done for her. And if Cerb is who she wants to be with, then I hope he’s wise enough to see that, pony or not. She’s the most amazing pony I’ve ever known, and he’d be lucky to have her.”

Sniff gave Spike a few pats on the back in an effort to perk up his mood.

"You're a good man, Spike. And I'll be real with you… Given the age difference between you two and the lack of interest she had in being with you like that, despite all you've been through together, you deserve to be with someone who does appreciate you. Just don't hold it against her for feeling that way."

Spike huffed, but the pho-angst was quickly dropped.

"I won't. I can't be mad at Rarity, and I really can't hold anything against Cerb, either. Just like you, he's always been nice to me. Then he got hurt saving me… He saved so many ponies' lives but needs so much help that he's going to the Crystal Empire to get help from Princess Cadance. And… while Twilight won't tell me too much, I overheard enough to know that some really bad things happened to him. That's why he has his nightmares and needs to have Rarity and Fluttershy there to take care of him. But, I think for what he's gone through and done for us, he deserves to have somepony as wonderful as Rarity."

Hearing Spike say all that really helped streamline what kind of support Sniff was going to give. So, with a new plan in mind, he stood up off the bed.

"Well, then. Now that we got that out of the way, let's meet up tomorrow. I’ve got a bunch of work to do today before the party tonight. And maybe we can get a little training in for ya then."

Spike hopped down from the bed, already getting excited.

"Really? Like, how to pick up chicks or get more than one special somepony?"

Sniff laughed for a moment at his adorable and juvenile expectations.

"Slow down there, Romeo. This isn't an overnight operation where you're spitting game like a pro. Tonight I'll show you some of the basics. But I've kept Swifty waiting too long down there."

"Yeah. Walk and talk, little inferno," Sniff confirmed with Spike as they walked out of the study together.

As the door shut, Starlight brushed shoulders with Twilight.

"Look at you, Princess. Might we be expecting the addition of another Prince to the Kingdom any time soon?"

Twilight rolled her eyes and did her best to keep her blush out of view as she turned away to fetch her new book stand.

"No, I don't think I see that happening. We're just going to have a few dates and stay friends. And, not that I don't think he wouldn't make a good Prince, but I'd never hear the end of it from my parents if I didn't bring them a grandfoal like Shining and Cadance have."

Starlight cocked an ear, not knowing how much Twilight was implying with that.

"You… aren't, um—" She was at a loss for words for a moment and realized she was going to have to ask some better questions. "How did you learn about that?"

Twilight stood tall and realized she opened a topic she wasn't ready for. She didn't even get an explanation from Oven Fresh.

"It was something Peter said before. I guess he was getting confused by other mares flirting with him. He didn't understand what our practices for starting a family were. Somehow he got it in his head that there were ponies out there that want to skip marriage and go straight to the baby-making part… or something else. He wasn't too clear on that. Neither was Oven Fresh come to think of it."

Starlight gulped and tried to hide her nervousness.

"Wow. Yeah. That's… weird. But… what do you think about that? Do you think there are mares out there that would like to have sex without being married?"

Twilight laughed. That question was still just as ridiculous as when Sniff implied it.

"What would be the point? And I don't know how that would happen. Learning what sex is, is something that happens when you're ready to start a family… Or at least, that's Oven Fresh's theory. Which I guess makes sense. Why else would I not have known about it?"

Now thinking about it again, she gave Luna and Starlight a confused look.

"Unless both of you know about it?"

Luna chuckled at the question, seemingly confident she could clear up any confusion Twilight might have had.

“Oh, Twilight. It may be a right of passage to accept the task of bearing a foal, but it’s no mystery that when a mare and stallion love each other very much. They… well, first… It starts when they… kiss?”

Whatever this conversation was, it wasn’t one Starlight wanted to be the subject of focus over.

“Well... that’s… interesting? But even for as interesting as it is, I could really use your help with these two issues. And Luna, you might like this, too. Chris was kind enough to lend me his phone device, and I’ve been trying to recreate all the music and other information he has stored on it, but I can’t get the spells to operate properly.“

Having pulled the two royal's interest, Starligh brought out Chris’s smartphone, the CD player, and her power device. Besides, she knew this was still something Twilight had desired to know more of for the sake of Sniff anyway.

"Unless you have something you still wanted to talk to Twilight about?”

Luna's attention, seemingly taken away from the talk of foal making, looked at the three contraptions and then to the happy faces of Twilight and Starlight.

“No, I was only concerned about Twilight after what happened last night with her gifts. Otherwise, I’m afraid I’m a bit too tired as it is. I will retire for the day and see you all again before the party. Though I may need some pointers for this double-double date, Pinkie has planned for me. Hooves crossed, I don’t make a fool of myself.”

Starlight rolled her eyes and gave a happy sigh.

"Benny hangs out with Pinkie Pie. I'm sure he will be ready to help you through whatever craziness she throws your way."

Luna nodded, too tired to anticipate what Pinkie might try to pull and eager to step away from the previous conversation.

"Yes, I'm sure you're right. Enjoy the rest of your day, you two."

They all bid their farewells, and Starlight moved to bring Twilight up to speed on what all she's done.

"And that's where I'm stuck. I don't have enough strength in my spell to make everything run together as fast like it should on his device. And with the power to keep the rest of their devices going, my gems either make too much power or just enough to make the stupid light turn on. And now, with everything Applejack has gone through, Chris and I think that it would be really nice to do the same thing for Lumberman’s phone. Granted, only Applejack would be able to use it, but still.”

Twilight looked over the notes and spells that had been written out again.

“Hmm. Well, you got it to work, which means that you have the right spell to make it operate, but if it’s not running fast enough, we might have to add another spell just for the speed. Do you know Accelero?”

Starlight facehoofed hard enough that it made an audible thunk throughout the room at the obvious blunder.

“Why didn’t I think of that?“ She dropped her hoof back down the floor with a sigh. “I’m sure that would fix the issue with it running fast enough, so long as we can make it last more than a few seconds, but I think there’s another problem where my spell doesn’t seem to recreate all the information on the phone. I can see the volume of information captured doesn’t match the volume of information shown… If that makes any sense.”

Twilight took another look at the notes and spells used.

“Well, the method you’re using is based on written text with ink. If their—“ She took another look at the phone, visibly struggling to understand how any information could be on there if it wasn’t physical or magical. “—information isn’t all visible; you would need to modify the spell to display all hidden content. Here, let me show you.”

Over the next few minutes, Twilight went over the complexities of hidden words or pictures that could be used to hide small messages or large blocks of content and how to reveal them. Working the Accelero spell took a little more time to be written in with the others, but once they were sure they had it, they decided to give it a try.

Now ready, Starlight powered up the phone and then placed it down next to the crystal.

“Here goes nothing.”

A bright light grew from Starlight’s horn, and she focused on the complex spells she was working with each other. The phone was wrapped in her aura, which quickly splashed over to the crystal. They both rose off the desk and hovered in place until a brilliant light flashed out. Both items hung in the air while Starlight had to second-guess her efforts.

Cautiously, Starlight lowered the phone down to the desk and brought the crystal up close enough to touch.

“If this worked the way I hoped it would...”

She tapped the crystal with her hoof, bringing up a display exactly like that of the phone, only it projected out and was now over two feet tall. Everything looked just as clear as the screen on Chris’s phone and could be worked with just a tap of her hoof. Tapping and sliding along, she brought up the music selection and looked for something Twilight would enjoy.

When she found the track she was looking for, she tapped it and turned to Twilight.

“I found this one while looking over some of the other songs Chris had. Tell me if it sounds familiar.”

At first, Twilight didn’t pay any mind to the title of the song Twilight Sparkle feat. Dusk Shine - Magic, but about fifteen seconds in.

“Is that me singing?”

Starlight could have been as excited as Pinkie as she watched Twilight listen to a remix of her own singing.

“I’m pretty sure Shining sings with you somewhere in the middle of it. But isn’t this amazing?!”

Throughout the entire song, Twilight was speechless. She’d never heard herself sing, nor in that style of music. It was so poppy and fun. When she had sung that song, it was low and sad, or at least part of that song was sad. There must have been at least two other songs mixed in with it, but it all came out beautifully.

As the song ended, and I’m Fluttershy (Fire of Friendship Remix) started up, Starlight lowered the volume through another set of controls on the display and turned back to Twilight.

“Well, if it’s playing through to the next song, I think that means it’s working… And if this is actually Fluttershy’s singing voice, she really needs to sing more often. I know she sang with all of us in our song Friends Are Always There For You, but she harmonized with everypony so well that I never got to hear how well she can sing by herself.”

The changing of the song pulled Twilight out of her distracted state, and she answered, “Oh. Yes. Fluttershy is very gifted with her singing. But could you make one of these for me? I’d love to hear more of these songs with us.”

With a nod, Starlight used her magic to lift up another crystal.

“Help me with the power issues, and you got yourself a deal.”

Luna was tossing and turning in her bed, struggling to get comfortable while mulling over her little misstep at the castle.

"Starts with kissing? What am I, a clueless foal? I know what starting a family means. Every pony knows how to make a foal of their own… but… if it does start with a kiss… what does that mean when Kelly kissed me? She's a mare and human. But—" She rolled to her side again and hugged a pillow. "—she made it feel so loving, and it felt like she wanted more than just a kiss."

She thought again about how wonderful that moment made her feel. They had connected with each other on some level of understanding she hadn’t experienced with others. Kelly was sympathetic and only sought out her company. She trusted her, or was it better to say they trusted each other? Plus, those gifted hands of hers. Though, they couldn’t hold that much sway over her? She liked Kelly for the quality of time they spent together.

Right?

"Or was it I who wanted more, and she felt so much remorse because… Perhaps she… Perhaps she has won the heart of Big Macintosh? But if humans cannot bear a foal with us, would there be any difference if she was with me?"

Letting out a miserable groan, she rolled over again, still hugging her pillow.

"Who am I kidding? I've never been the type to fancy another mare. It was Big Macintosh that I wanted."

She closed her eyes, and again her mind went to the kiss she gave Big Mac. It was sincere, truly an innocent one. The feeling of being able to express how she felt about a stallion warmed her heart and gave her so many fantastical thoughts of a loving future with him… but they never came. That kiss hadn’t been mutual, and after realizing that fact, that warmth faded and left behind an emptiness.

Then she remembered the kiss Kelly gave her. It came as a surprise, but it was mutual, nor had it left her empty. Perhaps she wanted more, but—

"Gah! This is ridiculous. I cannot want two who are… But if they are not…"

She threw the pillow in a fit of frustration. How could she still want Big Mac when he had offered no affection in return? Then again, how could she want… What did she want with Kelly? Because if the reports were accurate and Sniff really had been so distant to ponies but was now dating Twilight, what did she really know about humans? He was even dating multiple mares. Was this common for them?

No… Sniff was justifiably worried about others finding out. However, that just left Luna running in circles with her thoughts.

"I do not wish to come between them, nor risk losing Kelly as a friend by imposing my selfish desires upon her."

She groaned and levitated the pillow back into her hold.

"Not that I regret this skeleton in my closet, as it were, but—" She squeezed the pillow tightly. "I would love to have her rest with me once more. To feel her against me so I could hold her to calm my loneliness as she did with her own. But now, if I am to date Benny? He seems plenty nice enough. And I am sure he must be lonely after losing as much as he has."

She wrestled with her thoughts of all the humans and their companions. Benny had been the most quiet of the seven humans. Even outside of events of the Everfree Forest, he was likely the least active. Yet, even with his latest admission of his tragic past, he was still such a mystery.

"He does not seem to hold the same attachments with Pinkie as the others do with their companions. She even offered him to me as if he were some party favor."

Being reminded of the offer left her to contemplate how this evening would go.

Benny was indeed a fine specimen but was not one she was all that familiar with. Lumberman was a loving caretaker, but she had to speculate that if she was having these thoughts, so was Applejack, and a sense of mutual attraction was evident between the two. Chris was the most familiar with their culture, and if what Celestia had told her was true, he would be the most likely to be interested.

However, Chris was also the most timid and unapproachable, given how he reacted to Twilight. There was also Becky, but she was going away to the Crystal Empire. Not only that, she had demonstrated no real interest in ponies. There was their time together dancing at the welcome party, but it was Kelly who first caught her interest.

Cerb was also a strong choice she had in mind, lonely like her with a painful past that he still struggled with. Not only that, he was strong, brave, handsome, and according to Cadence, had a lot of love to share if he could only open up to it… But he was incredibly wrapped up in Fluttershy and Rarity. Not to mention he was also leaving soon.

There was also Sniff. He was also brave and handsome, such an incredible charmer on top of that. The way he spoke to her one-on-one made her feel desired and left her flattered to near embarrassment. However, not only had Twilight claimed him, but so had another. And even he wasn't in it for a committed relationship...

In the end, her mind was on Kelly and their kiss. She pulled her pillow even tighter against her, imagining it was Kelly. Right or wrong, that is what she wanted.

"I am a Princess, and I may associate with whomever I please. I will confront them both on where they stand."

Whack!

Big Mac bucked another tree, letting the apples rain down from the branches and into the resting baskets below.

"Won't be long now. Ain't got much of the orders left to catch up on."

Kelly was helping out as much as she could, picking up the few stray apples that missed the baskets.

"I'm just glad I can actually help this time. But uh… You want to take a little break?"

Big Mac turned his attention over to Kelly and the seductive look she was giving him.

"I uh… Well, I'm not so worried about Applejack now, but I don't want to catch any grief from Granny—"

"No, it's fine," Kelly playfully answered. "It can wait." A devilish thought crossed her mind, and she was sure she could get away with it. "I'm sure if you're just going to keep putting me off, I can always see if Luna is interested in spending some time with me."

Stopping in his ready-to-buck stance, Big Mac gave Kelly a desperate look.

"You wouldn't leave me for Luna, would you?"

"Leave you?" Kelly asked as if it were an honest question he was asking her. "I thought you wanted to know what it would be like if I was with a girl here? Not that I think I would, but I don't think Luna was ready to kick me out of bed when I kissed her."

She gave a devious grin, but something about it didn't feel right. True, she loved toying with him, but he was seriously concerned about her infidelity. Even worse, Luna had such incredibly soft lips and would be just as easy to toy with.

The more she thought about it, the thought of playing with Luna sounded more and more tempting when she was this horny. She would have to stop if this game was going to be this unfair to him and put her in such a compromising position in the future.

"And, again, I'm sorry about that. I shouldn't joke about it. Forget I even brought it up."

Still distracted from the taunts, Big Mac put his chores on hold and went to sit next to Kelly.

"I won't lie about it. Part of me is a little hurt that you would so easily find somepony to take my place… But part of me hearing that also kinda makes me feel… you know."

Looking to put his fears to rest, Kelly pulled Big Mac's face to hers and gave him a comforting kiss.

"It's fine. You should be angry with me. I… kind of did cheat on you. Sort of."

She let herself fall back into the grass and lay there defeated.

"I don't know why I can't stop myself or why I'm so needy. And don't think I'd up and go find some new guy to go fuck around with. I honestly love how you make me feel. No other guy has had the kind of impact on me that you have, and I don't ever want to give you up."

Big Mac joined her in the grass, laying belly down next to her, an unsure look on his face.

"Then why'd you even kiss her in the first place?"

Kelly raised her hands in a gesture of her own confusion.

"I don't know. She was talking about how she fell for you, but then you didn't return the gesture… She looked and sounded so heartbroken over it. And then she was laying in bed with me like you would because I was lonely. I just needed someone to hold onto and wanted to give her something to make her feel special. Something to show her that I appreciated everything she was doing for us… and maybe..."

She turned to address him face to face. She hated being this weak and needed him to be there for her.

"You know how I told you that I've been with both men and women?"

Big Mac nodded his head, a minor blush dusting his already red face.

"Eyup."

Kelly rolled her eyes, still finding his simple ways so adorable.

"I both love and hate you saying that. But anyway. Earlier on, I was only attracted to men. However, eventually, I realized how much guys like the idea of girls making out and fooling around with other girls, so I did it to make it easier for me to seduce other guys. Though... after a few times of it not working like I wanted it to, I was left alone with whoever the girl I was flirting with to get the guy's attention… so I gave in and let them be the one I was with for the night."

Somehow, this part of her life never sat well with her. It felt so dishonest and, even considering everything else she'd done, sleazy.

"And… I liked it. I wasn't so necessarily attracted to being with a woman, but who they were and how they made me feel. That's what I liked. Eventually, I got so used to it that I was attracted to them, but kind of like with you, I was attracted to who you were before I also wanted to see how far we could go."

Try as he might, Big Mac was barely following along.

"So, you'll have sex with anyone so long as you like them?"

Had it been anyone else, Kelly probably would have slapped him.

"No, it's not that simple. It's not just that I like them. I have to feel something intimate with them. I had that with you our first time in the orchard together. And I hope you don't hate me for saying this, but if you were human, you would have had me there and then."

Why did being honest hurt so much?

"But… I was scared not only of what you are. I was honestly scared that even if you weren't human, you were too good for me… Pretty sure I'm proving myself right."

Big Mac sighed, still struggling to comprehend this.

"Kelly… I'm not mad at what ya did. I don't understand it, but I know you had a hard time from where you came from. You also told me that you had a lot of partners and… Look… It's not like ya confessed yer undying love to her or… You didn't have sex with her, did ya?"

Kelly immediately shot him a glare.

"No… It was just a kiss. Just a peck on the lips… for about ten or fifteen seconds. But no tongue or anything heavy like we've done."

Big Mac frowned and blew through his lips at Kelly’s attempt to downplay the act.

"Anyway, as I was saying. If ya didn't do with her what yer doing with me, I'm not gonna hold it against ya, but I would like to know where ya stand with it? Cus' if given the chance, would ya?"

Kelly let herself go down to her back again and sighed, knowing full well her next words could make or break everything she had.

"I don't want to. I like the idea of us being serious together and me not sleeping around all the time. I want to be passed all of that."

Big Mac was hearing a lot of wants and not a lot of confirmations.

"But?"

Kelly sighed again, knowing she couldn’t get away with beating around the bush.

"But… I almost did with her. I'm weak, Mac. This was a habit for me, and I want you to be the one to help me break it. Because I know if she pushed herself on me or if we were left alone long enough… I'm pretty sure I would."

Big Mac was really struggling with this in more ways than one.

"It sounds to me like part of you wants to."

Kelly groaned and covered her face in her hands.

"I'm sorry. I told you before that I'm… exactly who I am."

Briefly silent, Big Mac still had a lot on his mind about all of this.

"What… would you do with her anyway? She can't rut you like I can. Unless ya just planned on doing mouth and hand stuff with her. Which I imagine would be nice and all, but ya wouldn't want to be with her like we are, would ya?"

Kelly pulled one hand off her face and gave Big Mac a look that seemed a bit off-putting.

"Are you asking because you want to understand me better, or is this turning you on?"

Now looking a bit shy, Big Mac grinned and grew a slightly brighter red.

"Maybe a bit 'uh both?"

Kelly sat up, clearly concerned, if not outright worried.

"Mac, I'll be completely blunt and honest with you if you do the same for me. And to be clear, I recognize that in my weakness, because I'm a bit of a slut, part of me wants to give in and experiment with fooling around with Luna because I… have some fucked up emotional connection to her after we had a long heart to heart about how I was worried about Cerb. That, and she kept me company every night you were gone, and made me breakfast in bed, and…"

Kind of funny how a lower libido can make you think a bit more clearly.

"Awe, Jesus fucking Christ. She… How in the fuck did I seduce her into wanting me? I wasn't… Goddamnit. Mac, I think I fucked up. Like really fucked up. I thought at most it was some… I dunno. Confused sense of longing and need for acceptance and having someone to be close to. But I think she's trying to win me over like you were."

Big Mac was oddly silent as Kelly started to stare him down. She needed his input on this. He knew Luna better than she did. Hopefully.

"Well? Any thoughts on my situation about how I… Mac?"

Big Mac turned his eyes away from Kelly, looking and sounding both unusually distant.

"I uh… I don't know what to think. I think I should be mad or insulted or… sad?"

Kelly waited longer than she thought she needed to for him to finish his thoughts.

"But?"

Big Mac wouldn't look at Kelly, even as he started to finish telling her what was on his mind.

"You said you'd like to but don't want to. But I'm so hard right now just thinking about it."

He turned back to Kelly, rolling over on his side, revealing that Little Big Red had made a triumphant return.

"I have to do all I can not tuh think about ya doing what ya did in front of me so I don't get hard. Cuz’ thinking ‘bout it just makes me want to do all them things with ya. But thinking about you with another mare and what that would look like?"

Kelly facepalmed, realizing how she was solely to blame for this.

"Mac… remember how you told me before about messing with you so much about having sex was pulling you in two different directions?"

Big Mac nodded, now looking nervous, thinking he managed to up upset Kelly with his lewd thoughts.

"Eyuuuuu-uh—yes I do."

Kelly snorted out a short laugh and then punched Big Mac in the chest.

"Yeah, well, congrats, because now you're doing the same thing to me."

Big Mac blinked a few times at the odd response.

"I am?"

Kelly pushed Big Mac onto his back and straddled his lap.

"I love teasing you, Mac. It's a very bad habit that I picked up. I love watching you get excited over me. Wanting me. Getting you excited gets me excited, and then I want to take all that excitement and have you fuck me with it. And now that I know you want to watch me fool around with Luna, when I was already tempted? Do you have any idea how hard it's going to be for me not to flirt with her or see how far I can take things?"

Stunned and unable to find the right words to say, Big Mac was now in an unfortunately heavily compromised state.

"I-uh. Well, I was really just—"

"Do you want to watch her lick my pussy?" Kelly asked in a seductive voice. "Do you want to watch me slide my fingers up in her pussy and make her cum?"

These were the things he had only had guessed they could do together, but to hear her say that he could watch, he was at a loss for words.

His first instinct was to say yes, but something inside told him to say no. Maybe because he knew there was something inherently wrong about it. That, or the simple idea that it was a temptation she was trying to resist that made him feel like he shouldn't support these desires. But that was until she started to trace a finger up and down his shaft.

Kelly was frustrated, both sexually and with herself. However, that didn’t stop her from taking advantage of the situation.

"Do you want to watch me play with Luna, Mackie? You want to kiss me and taste her on my lips? I know you like tasting me on mine. Maybe you can even taste both of us together?"

Big Mac was lost in a world of carnal thoughts and the heavenly pleasures of Kelly's touch.

"Yes. I mean, no. Unless you-Mmmph, you want to. I mean—"

Kelly took Big Mac's shaft in her right hand and started to slowly stroke him off.

"Mackie… I don't think you've met the real Bad Girl Kelly. The really, really horny Bad Girl Kelly that loves to play and be pleased. I'm trying to be a good girl."

She started to rub her thumb over the head of his cock as she stroked up, her hand already coated with a heavy glaze of his pre.

"But you're making it so hard for me, baby. It's like you want me to be naughty with our lady of the night."

Another stroke up and Big Mac raised his hips, and his eyes clamped shut. He let out a throaty groan which turned into a loud grunt as he quickly orgasmed.

Shocked by the sudden climax, Kelly almost let go and thought she had somehow hurt him by accident. But as the torrent of white erupted, she steadied her grip and continued to work him through it.

Big Mac wasn't really there as he came. Only for the briefest of moments could he even open his eyes. He never called her name or cried out. It was more like he was paralyzed by the grip she held on him. Eventually, he started to go limp; only then did the paralysis start to ease away, leaving him panting.

Still sitting on his lap, Kelly started to giggle.

“Well… that was a surprise.”

Barely conscious, covered in his own spunk, and still in a state of euphoria, Big Mac started to come around.

“That… was—“ He had to pant heavily to catch his breath. “Holy Celestia… That was—“ Again, he struggled to catch his breath. “—so much better than doing it muh-self.”

Kelly gave a low chuckle.

“Well, I can’t blame you for blowing your load so quickly. I imagine you’ve been pretty pent up, and I’m sure teasing you didn’t help much.”

Big Mac felt a dramatic change in his mental state as soon as Kelly released her grip on his withering cock.

“Gah… if by pent up ya mean wanting to fuck you like you kept teasing me ‘bout we should do, that’s an understatement.“

He lifted his head just enough to look her in the eyes.

“But, I’m sorry ‘bout bring’n up Luna. I think that was the horny talk’n.“ His head flopped back into the grass. “I reckon ya found the Bad Boy Mac in me.”

“Welp,” Kelly stood up over Big Mac and undid her shorts, dropping them with her panties. “I’ve been pent up, too. So, how’s about you treat your special lady to a little release of her own?”

Seemingly giving in to his desires, Big Mac bore a drunken smile.

“Oh, Kelly. I’ve been looking forward tuh this since ya first showed me what ta look forward to.“

He lay there motionless in the grass for a moment, though a sight twitch of his legs suggested an attempt at movement, with no success.

“Why can’t I move? I feel like a changeling just drained me.”

Still pantless, Kelly looked him over.

“Well, you did cum pretty hard. It’s not uncommon for a guy to need a minute to recover after they blow their load. And since I made it extra special, it just means you might need a few minutes.“

Seeing they wouldn’t be getting into any hard action yet, she laid down at his side and started to fondle him.

“Can’t say it wasn’t fun playing with you, though.”

As the treatment continued, Big Mac’s smile only grew wider.

“I just wished it lasted longer. Yer hands feel so incredible. And you talk'n ‘bout Luna… I enjoy the thought of it, but I ‘doan wanna push ya into do’en nuthing ya don’t want to.”

Kelly leaned up over her stud just enough to deliver a few loving kisses before looking him in the eyes with a coy grin.

“I don’t know if it’s nothing I don’t want to do, but more like something I know I shouldn’t do. And I’m probably blowing shit out of proportion with how much she might want to do with me… But I was serious about everything else. I could be easily tempted by her, given how we connected and how nice it felt being close to her when I was missing you. That, and knowing now that it gets you excited, that reeeally makes it more enticing to know it might turn you on.”

Big Mac turned his head and gave Kelly a kiss back.

“Yer plenty ‘nuff fer me, darling.”

Looking quite giddy, Kelly gave him a quick peck on the lips back.

“I feel the same about you, Big Guy… But I… really do need to know how you feel about me doing this. Again, easily tempted. So, if this is a no-go from you about me doing it. I need to hear you say it so I know to keep my distance.“

She rocked her head side to side, silently at war with herself.

“Not that I’m going to try and bang her, but I know me.”

Some of Bad Boy Mac was returning, and he could feel that side clouding his judgment.

“If ya did… would ya leave me?”

Kelly pulled her hand away from his crotch and flicked him in the ear.

“You’re making this whole straight and narrow thing I’m trying to pull a lot fucking harder than it needs to be, ya jackass.”

Big Mac grinned, his perverse thoughts overriding his rational sensibilities.

“We’re also taking it slow.”

With a sudden spurt of laughter, Kelly thumped Big Mac on the chest.

“An open relationship isn’t taking it slow. And, I’m sorry, but I know that I told you that I’m like this, but I don’t want you thinking that you can start sleeping around on me with other mares. And I… Gah! I’m gonna feel like a total bitch if you let me fuck around, even if you do get off from it. And I would say at the least join us, but you knocking up a princess?“

She stopped to give their situation another thought.

“Unless she’s into oral? I mean, if she’s into me, so she’s got to be into-what the fuck am I even talking about? Mac, I’m too horney to think straight. Can you please eat me out until you can fuck me?”

So, yet another set of plans were scrapped with Sniff and Twilight still having breakfast with everyone else anyway. Which, led to the heartwarming sites of Applejack and Lumberman being adorable with each other.

Some good news, though. Luna is moving into Ponyville until the restoration of The Castle of the Two Sisters is completed. However, that is to be overshadowed by the announcement from Twilight gave to the other ponies. Now they can be open about how they feel about their humans and safely pursue a relationship with them, which is what Twilight intends to do. Not that everypony is willing to share how far along they've come with their human love interest or their intentions to rut. But... how long can that last?

Well, at least being able to use the cover of "I just want to keep them safe," will be helpful how intimately close they appear to be.

For the humans, they seem to be losing faith in the prospects of returning home and look to be focusing on fixing themselves and battle hardening their ponies. That should be fun.

Oh! And the infamous Cutter has been revealed! And boy, howdy is she ever protective of her baby girl Ovens. She seems ruthless and determined, which makes her the perfect candidate to track down Trixie. I'm sure nothing bad can come of that.

Then back to Ponyville and the four Solar Guards seem to love sticking around with the humans. Now we can expect them to stick around for some more shenanigans, maybe even another rematch or two.

Then for what so many of you were waiting for. Twilight actually managed to ask Sniff out. I made it a point to recreate the same scene from Trixie's dream with the same setup where she took advantage of Sniff. The same dialog for the most part and same chair where she jumped on his lap, only she exploited a more intimate embrace than what

To find out how the next breakfast goes, tune in next week for the publication of Chapter 68. Compensating: Part 2 "Comparing Fantasy to Reality."

A big thank you to ParanoidSiren, formally KittyWoofers. Check out her amazing art at any of the sites listed below.

https://www.deviantart.com/Parano1ds1ren
https://www.instagram.com/ParanoidSiren
https://www.twitter.com/ParanoidSiren

Bonus! The reference sheet for Cutter.